Bob Phillips
Keith’s note: I just learned that my long time friend Bob Phillips has died. Bob was one of the original crew members selected for the Spacelab mission which eventually became SLS-1. He was disqualified a few years after selection for medical reasons but continued to work on the mission. Indeed, if you look at the STS-40 mission patch you will see that the stars representing the crew members forms a “P” in his honor. I got to know Bob very well over the years via the ASGSB (now ASGSR) and worked closely with him on the Space Station Freedom Program where he served as Chief Scientist. Indeed, shortly before I decided to leave NASA I had been given permission to serve as his deputy. We wrote this paper together at one point. When you look at what happens on the ISS today, you can thank Bob for helping make that science happen at a time when science was not a priority.
Anyone who knew Bob will tell you that he was just always a pleasure to be around. He was a veterinarian by training, so he had learned a wide range of skills dealing with animals that also seemed to work on people too – sometimes. I don’t think he ever got mad since he was almost always smiling. He told lots of bad jokes, and always tried to help others get through the problems that piled up on their desk. Simply put Bob was a genuinely nice person in a world where there are never enough nice people. He will be missed. Ad Astra, Bob.
Robert “Bob” Phillips, Colorado State University
A truly great guy who will be missed – nice profile Keith!
Wonderful tribute to Bob. I first came to know him on Spacelab-1, when he was an Alternate Payload Specialist, and I was a PI. Bob was a true gentleman in all senses of the word, with a wonderful sense of humor with a youthful and adventurous outlook. I recall teaching him to windsurf on Clear Lake on a windy day when he was well into his sixties. There was no quit in him. Bob indeed held the torch for science in the early ISS days – his style was to build consensus, rather than confront. All of his Spacelab SLS colleagues will miss him greatly. Chuck Oman/MIT Aero Astro.
I got to know Bob 20 years ago when I was a graduate student at Colorado State. He was incredibly generous with his time and advice. A great man.
From my NASA co-worker Kevin Schaefer:
‘On March 15 I went to a memorial service in Fort Collins, Colorado for Bob Phillips, who died last February.
I met Bob just over 20 years ago when Bob was appointed Chief Scientist for the Space Station and I was working in the program office in Reston, Virginia. We were a bunch of young, firebrand engineers who had absolutely no idea about how to do science. We marveled at Bob’s uncanny ability to sleep through endless NASA meetings, but wake up with a crucial comment whenever the speaker said something incorrect. A woman mentioned at the memorial service that had Bob had complained about the ‘crazy waste quality specs on the Space Station.’ Needless to say, I was the one who wrote those specs, but Bob soon had us all on the right track. In the end, the Space station program was completely reorganized and we were all scattered about like chaff in the wind, but Bob left a bit of himself with each of us.
By chance, I returned to school to get my PhD at Colorado State University in Fort Collins and reconnected with Bob and his wife Nancy. Knowing we had no family in the area, Bob and Nancy invited us to Thanksgiving dinners with their family. Bob and Nancy sponsored us when my wife Susy and I decided to adopt. They shared our joy in ‘happy court’ when the Judge finalized the adoptions and occasionally watched the kids while Susy and I had a rare night out. When I finally graduated, Bob helped me find a job. Susy and I aspire to be as vibrant, active, and adventurous as Bob and Nancy. Good bye Bob. You were generous colleague and warm friend. You will be sorely missed.
Kevin